African Markets - Factors to watch on March 20

Reuters Staff

3 Min Read

The following company announcements, scheduled economic indicators, debt and currency market
moves and political events may affect African markets on Monday.
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GLOBAL MARKETS
Asian stocks were mixed on Monday in thin trade, following
Wall Street's declines and the G20's decision to drop a
pledge to avoid trade protectionism, while the Federal
Reserve's less hawkish-than-expected comments continued to
drag the dollar lower.
WORLD OIL PRICES
Oil prices fell on Monday as rising U.S. drilling activity
and steady supplies from OPEC countries despite touted
production cuts pressured already-bloated markets.
EMERGING MARKETS
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AFRICA STOCKS
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SOUTH AFRICA MARKETS
South Africa's rand firmed to a near 19-month high on Friday
over dovish comments by the U.S. Federal Reserve, which gave
impetus to emerging market currencies against the retreating
greenback.
NIGERIA MARKETS
Nigeria's overnight lending rate eased to 12 percent on
Friday compared with 15 percent at the start of the week, as
commercial lenders anticipated fresh inflows from state
bodies.
NIGERIA RATES
Nigeria's central bank will leave its benchmark interest
rate unchanged on Tuesday to try and curtail high inflation
as Africa's top economy grapples with its first recession in
25 years, a Reuters poll found on Friday.
NIGERIA POLICY
Nigeria's monetary and fiscal authorities must cooperate on
their policies to help Africa's largest economy to develop,
the central bank governor said, according to his spokesman.
KENYA MARKETS
The Kenyan shilling KES= was seen to be under pressure from
the dollar on Friday due to oil importers buying dollars,
traders said.
KENYA CENTRAL BANKER
The governor of Kenya's central bank Patrick Njoroge should
be investigated in connection with a multi-million-dollar
scam at a youth employment programme, a parliamentary
committee said.
GHANA MARKETS
The Bank of Ghana said the yield on its weekly 91-day bill
rose to 17.2108 percent at an auction on Friday, from
16.4392 percent at the last sale, on March 10.
ZIMBABWE BOND NOTES
Zimbabwe's central bank has printed half of the 'bond notes'
quasi-currency it intends to issue under a $200 million
scheme, a state newspaper reported on Friday, as the country
grapples with a biting shortage of U.S. dollars.
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